Members will be sorry to learn of the sudden death on Saturday 9th May 2026 of Professor Martyn Chamberlain.
Born in 1947 and raised in Leicester, Martyn went to Corpus Christi College, Oxford, where he read Physics. He remained in Oxford as a postgraduate, receiving his doctorate in semiconductor physics in 1972. He subsequently joined the School of Physics and Astronomy in the University of Nottingham as a Lecturer, and following promotion to Senior Lecturer and then Reader, he took up the Chair of Engineering Physics at the University of Leeds in 2001, where he also became Director of the Institute of Microwaves and Photonics.
Martyn’s research focussed on the exploration and development of the far-infrared (or ‘terahertz’) region of the electromagnetic spectrum. Unlike the neighbouring microwave and mid-infrared frequency regions of the spectrum, which have found longstanding application for both fundamental research and real-world use, the terahertz region previously struggled to gain traction owing to the lack of convenient radiation sources and detectors. At Nottingham, Martyn used a combination of cyclotron resonance techniques, ultra-low temperatures and high magnetic fields to facilitate far-infrared spectroscopy studies, which took him to large experimental facilities in Grenoble and Nijmegen, and built the foundations of his work and his international collaborations in terahertz science and engineering. During the early 1990s, Martyn was instrumental in building and consolidating the UK’s expertise and international reputation in terahertz imaging and spectroscopy. He organised key NATO Advanced Scientific Institute summer schools that attracted influential US research-laboratory leaders and Nobel Laureats from around the world to inspire the next generation of scholars and young scientists. He worked widely and generously with UK and international collaborators, where he championed a remarkable range of activity. This included exploring the use of terahertz radiation for applications as diverse as medical imaging, leading the EU Framework FP5 ‘Teravision’ project, as well as for forensic and security screening. He attracted several UK colleagues to join him at the University of Leeds, where many continue to pursue this research activity today.
In 2003, he moved to Durham University to take up the Chair in Applied Physics, and to become Head of Grey College. He continued to work with colleagues at Leeds and continued his leadership of the terahertz community across Europe through coordination of the EU Framework FP6 ‘TeraNova’ consortium, incorporating many academic and significant industrial partners such as Thales, which was envied by colleagues in the United States. Although Martyn formally retired in 2011, he continued to support the field, his former colleagues, and the next generation of researchers, by generously giving up his time to chair advisory boards for research programmes passing on his experience and wisdom, as well as taking on formal mentoring roles for early career researchers.
Those who knew Martyn will miss his boundless energy and enthusiasm, his integrity, his sense of humour and, more than anything, his deep kindness. Martyn is survived by his wife, Sarah, and their two sons Ralph and Edmund, along with their wider families.
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